Sunday, 13 October 2013

FILIPE ALVIM - EP REVIEW

Filipe Alvim - Zero EP (Pug Records)

Filipe Alvim - Zero EP

Filipe Alvim is, in his own
words, a "22 year old unemployed man who doesn't know how to do anything".
Filipe Alvim is also a Brazilian living in Brazil and creating music for the
youth of Brazil, not for tourists. This five track EP is a fantastic example of
what can be found on the world music scene if you're prepared to delve a little
deeper and forgo the fact that you might not understand any of the lyrics. 'Domingo'
opens proceedings and instantly all you can imagine is the Strokes jamming
lazily by a beach hut in vests and with at least 4 days of stubble growth doing
nothing to stem the tide of sweat trickling down their faces. 'A Divisao' has a
more grand, almost 80s indie feel to it with distant vocals and a bonkers
guitar solo that would be more suited to a Queen concert but the talent is
undeniable. 'Jardim do Amor' is a Doors-esque, organ smothered tune with
sunshine dripping from every pore and a sense of French pop romance that,
personally, I just can't resist. The use of cowbell and scuzzed up guitars give
the tune an extra edge but if you're not already in love then you need to get
out more.

On 'Passageiro', Alvim gives us a
more cinematic insight to his world with Dick Dale guitars and that gorgeous
organ making an appearance again. Final track, 'Meu Sofa' is a mumbled, sleepy
almost out of time tune that should only be heard at the end of a night when
all the drinking, dancing and romancing has been done and it's time to go back
to somebody's home. For all I know, Alvim could be singing about hammocks or
extreme right wing politics but my naive sense of trust doesn't believe that
anyone channelling the Strokes, the Beach Boys and, well, the sun, can be a bad
person. So, let's all fall in love with Filipe Alvim and let him bring a little
sunshine in to our lives. Lord knows we need it!

1 comment:

It was a great honour to play the bass in this EP. Braulio, who produced the EP, called me in a Saturday afternoon and asked me to take my bass to his place and record a genious guy. He sent me "Jardim do Amor" that had already been recorded and it blowed my mind. I took my bass and we've recorded 3 songs in that afternoon. I can't wait to the full album and I wish to create more basses to him.